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WWII veteran crushes Tesla with tank in Elon Musk protest

WWII veteran crushes Tesla with tank in Elon Musk protest

The National08-05-2025

Ken Burns, 98, served in the British Army during the conflict and was videoed by activist group Led By Donkeys crushing the electric vehicle in a German tank from the war.
In the video posted to Twitter/X, Burns said: 'I'm old enough to have seen facism the first time around — now it's coming back.
"Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, is using his immense power to support the far right in Europe, and his money comes from Tesla cars.
"Well, I've got this message for Mr Musk: we've crushed facism before, and we'll crush it again.'
TANK vs TESLA
"We've crushed fascism before and we'll crush it again"
- ⁠WW2 veteran Ken, 98, in the tank pic.twitter.com/O6NBNWr4sc — Led By Donkeys (@ByDonkeys) May 7, 2025
Burns is captured running the war vehicle over the Tesla, a blue model which featured a registration plate spelling out the word facism.
Led By Donkeys, the organisation behind the video, is a self-described 'accountability project' first set up in response to the Brexit referendum.
Read more: Are Scottish universities at risk from Trump's DEI attack?
The group have remained active, calling the current Labour Government 'fair game' in their satire campaign against the 'thermonuclear hypocrisy' of pro-Brexit politicians and international figures like President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk.
The video was posted as Britain celebrates the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the end of WWII and the Nazi regime in mainland Europe.
Read more: Nigel Farage's copying of Elon Musk is a calculated propaganda move
Musk has faced backlash for his interference in US politics and platforming of extremists on Twitter/X, with Nigel Farage looking to replicate Musk's Department of Government Efficiency across the English councils Reform took control of last week.
Tesla was approached for comment.

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